Best Library Management Software

Libraries rely on library management systems to manage asset collections as well as relationships with their members. Library management systems help libraries keep track of their documents inventory and loans, and member subscriptions and profiles, sometimes for multiple physical locations. This type of software can be used by educational institutions’ libraries, as well as public or private libraries. Library patrons use library management systems to find, reserve, and loan documents while library staffs employ it to manage the acquisition, cataloging, and inventory of documents.

Library management systems usually integrate with digital information repositories to allow access to electronic resources. Library management systems also needs to integrate with accounting solutions to manage payments and other financial transactions.

To qualify for inclusion in the Library Management category, a product must:

Include a database that can be used to store and manage information on different types of content assets (books, magazines, movies, music records, and more) in different formats (print, electronic, video, etc.)

Manage patron and member information including profiles, present and past loans, payments, and penalties

Allow users to find information from public sources like OPAC (Online Public Access Catalog) or WorldCat

Manage asset inventory and loans across multiple physical locations

Provide statistics on loans, inventory, late returns, or lost documents

Library Management Software Grid® Overview

The best Library Management Software products are determined by customer satisfaction (based on user reviews) and market presence (based on products’ scale, focus, and influence) and placed into four categories on the Grid®:

High Performers are highly rated by their users, but have not yet achieved the Market Presence of the Leaders. High Performers include: Apollo ILS/LSP

Contenders have significant Market Presence and resources, but have received below average user Satisfaction ratings or have not yet received a sufficient number of reviews to validate the solution. Contenders include: Alma

Niche solutions do not have the Market Presence of the Leaders. They may have been rated positively on customer Satisfaction, but have not yet received enough reviews to validate them. Niche products include: SirsiDynix Symphony, Sierra ILS, and Polaris ILS

Star Rating

Alma is a library management solution that supports your library operations from selection to meta management, digitization, and fulfillment that helps you consolidate, manage and extend workflows systems and more.

Apollo is an ILS/LSP (Integrated Library System/Library Services Platform) devoted solely to public libraries. It has exceedingly delighted customers, with a 99.4% retention rate. Apollo library automation has won the Product of the Year award for 2016 and 2017. Its hosted-only and multi-tenant architecture continually pays benefits to customers though faster feature development, faster/better service, hassle-free 3rd party integration, and world-class server management and up-time. Unique capabilities like Gabbie, 2-way texting and Reserve Express for subscribing to favorite authors further set Apollo apart.

Alexandria library automation software empowers librarians and patrons with customizable interfaces, set-up, and hosting options. Access your catalog from any device on any browser - no apps needed! Plus, with 24/7 customer support, we're here for you every step of the way.

ResourceMate Essential is a solution that allows you to catalog resources, with searching and reporting capabilities and the ability to establish items that cannot be searched, while tracking pamphlets, flyers, brochures and more.

Voyager is the integrated library solution chosen by many of the world’s leading libraries to serve as the backbone of their service systems. This allows Voyager to interoperate with existing library systems and scale to accommodate future library needs.

STAR/Libraries is a web-based integrated library system with features that meet the needs of your library and information center that supports resources including technical reports, internal documents, web sites, and more.

Eloquent Library contains all the functions available in traditional Integrated Library Systems (ILS), plus everything required to build and maintain a virtual library. Your patrons have the convenience of only one place to look.

FIRST LMS is a library management suite that provides solutions for the information industry in library management, request management, learning and development management online access catalogue and more.

Insignia Library System is a full-featured library system (ILS Brochure). It can be installed as Windows-based or web based or web enabled, it has simple point-and-click navigation and is easy and fun for library patrons and staff.

Library.Solution is a library automation system that provides features with a user interface to help manage web-based automation, touch screen interfaces, access to e-books and digital resources, automatic authority controls, real-time inventory, reports manager and more.

OPALS is a proven, open source automated library system. Whether your library has hundreds of resources or millions, there is likely a library just like yours that has adopted OPALS. Well over 1000 libraries around the world use OPALS every day to manage library resources that hundreds of thousands of library members can access on the Web in their institutions, at home or at a local cafe.
Explore our Website, discover OPALS’ many features, technical support and engineering framework and contact us to set up a free hosted demonstration system. Upload all of your data and in 24 to 48 hours you and your community can explore OPALS’ every nook and cranny in the familiar context of your own library data.

Small Library Organizer Pro is a library management software that allows you to organize and manage your library with features like member information management, check-in/out transaction processes, tracking library circulation data and more.

Concourse is an easy-to-use, feature rich, library automation solution for all types of libraries. Concourse automates all of your library tasks from cataloging, circulation, searching, inventory and more.

BookMagic, Now a synonym to Library Management System is one of the leading windows and Web based Library Automation Software which is being used in over 100 Libraries in India and Middle East. It is an integrated user friendly system with its client server and online versions.

Inmagic GeniePlus is an integrated collection that provides library management and information management tools with a web-based system to manage, publish and access library and resource center assets.

KLAS is an integrated library system designed to meet the needs of special libraries that manages the functions needed for your operations like book and circulating magazine inventory control, magazine subscription control and more.

LIBSYS7 is a library management software that offers solutions in library automation, RFID, digital resource management, that allows you to deploy, sustain and enhance your library with innovations in library automation.

SydneyEnterprise and GeniePlus are purpose-built to deliver integrated library system and knowledge management capabilities. Rather than adding functionality to its existing products, Lucidea offers the first ILS developed from the ground up with knowledge workers in mind. Our applications are flexible and multifunctional, delivering traditional library services to global or mobile users, while fully leveraging online subscriptions, third party search engines and internal knowledge repositories.

My Library keeps all the information about your personal media collection at your fingertips. Separate tabs are available to display your books, movies, and compact discs, all ordered conveniently by title.

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Naseej is the leading knowledge solutions provider in the Arab World serving the region’s top Academic, research, cultural, and government organizations and corporations for the past 3 decades; delivering world-class solutions and services that have enabled our partners to manage and share knowledge and information.

ResourceMate Museum provides comprehensive cataloguing, searching and circulating software as well as unmatched technical support to not only libraries, schools, churches, museums, government, medical/nursing - but any organization that needs to be organized.

Raise literacy standards with RM Books, the whole-school ebook solution, and create a confident love of reading in your students. It's free to use and provides anywhere, anytime access to the latest fiction, non-fiction and etextbooks from any device with an internet connection, or read offline on Windows, Mac, iOS and Android.

Series-L is a library management and resource circulation program that provides features to help process holds, search, manage user information, print lists, labels, and more to help you manage your library information.

Soutron is a cloud-based Library, Archive, Knowledge, and Information Management Solutions provider dedicated to "Managing Library Transformation". We design, manufacture, market and service complete automation solutions to meet the unique needs of libraries and information centres around the world. We are committed to providing our clients with the most flexible and powerful information management system for corporate and special libraries.
Soutron offers a full service, including system implementation, training, help desk support, software maintenance, user groups and library transformation council meetings. We pride ourselves in keeping on top of emerging technologies to help make the most of our clients' hardware and software investment - now and in the future.